First mention in series: Appears in Taken by Midnight.

Claire (Samuels Roth) Reichen Breedmate of Order member Andreas Reichen. Claire Samuels was born more than fifty years ago, the daughter of an American peace worker and a Zimbabwean village doctor. Raised by her mother's wealthy Newport, Rhode Island, family after violence in Africa killed both her parents, Claire, a gifted pianist, later attended university in Germany. She was attacked there one night by a creature that tried to bite her, but was spared by another of his kind, a Breed male named Wilhelm Roth. Roth, already mated, took Claire to his Darkhaven as his ward.

There she learned about the Breed and her place in their world as a Breedmate. She also fell in love with a charming, if reckless, Breed male from Berlin, Andreas Reichen. But while Claire antic.i.p.ated Andreas's proposal to be his mate, instead he left her without a word. Spurned and heartbroken, Claire later capitulated to Roth after his Breedmate was killed and he offered to take her as his mate. Years later, that choice would return to haunt her, when Andreas Reichen enters Claire's life again, on a mission of b.l.o.o.d.y-minded vengeance against the villain who is her mate.

Hair: soft black Eyes: deep brown Breedmate mark: right side of her neck, by the pulse point Bloodscent: vanilla and warm spices Unique ability: dreamwalker Mate: Andreas Reichen Heroine in: Ashes of Midnight (Book 6) First mention in series: Appears in Ashes of Midnight.

Coleman Hogg Human. Dylan's boss at the tabloid magazine, unpleasant man. He was unhappy about her last-minute trip to Europe in her mother's place, threatening that if she wanted to keep her job, she'd better come back with some big story ideas. Dylan later sends him photos and an outline of her Czech Republic vampire story, but further aggravates him when she is forced to extend her stay out of the country. He eventually fires her via voicemail. After the Order finds out about the story and photos Dylan sent the magazine, Lucan orders Gideon to infect the magazine's computers with a virus and sends Niko and Kade to mind scrub Coleman Hogg.

First mention in series: Referenced in Midnight Rising.

Conlan MacConn (d.) Breed male, first mate of Danika for more than four-hundred years. The couple lived in the Scottish Highlands for centuries, before Con's sense of duty brought them to America about a hundred years ago, where he later pledged his sword to the Order. Red-haired, handsome, good-natured Conlan was a member of the Order in Boston until killed in action by a Rogue's suicide bombing (see Brent) on a Boston train.

Conlan was approximately five hundred years old at the time of his death, the son of a Scottish chieftan's (Breedmate) daughter and Breed male. Conlan and Danika had been mated for upwards of four hundred years and were expecting their first child (see Connor MacConn) together at the time he was killed. Conlan's funeral rite was the first to occur within the current timeline of the series.

First mention in series: Appears in Kiss of Midnight.

Connor MacConn Breed male, Danika and Conlan's son. Connor was unborn when his father, Conlan, was killed in action in Boston. Danika relocated to Denmark to have her son, and during the timeline of Ashes of Midnight, the boy is a blond, blue-eyed toddler of less than two years when Andreas Reichen and Claire seek shelter with Danika while on the run from Wilhelm Roth and Dragos. Several months later in the series timeline, in the novella, A Taste of Midnight, Connor and his mother are visiting Conlan's family in Scotland for the Christmas holiday. Danika dreads that her son will grow up one day to become a warrior like his father.

First mention in series: Appears in Ashes of Midnight as an infant.

Corinne Bishop Breedmate of Order member Hunter. Born the summer of 1917, Corinne had been abandoned at the back door of a Detroit hospital just hours after her birth. Adopted by a prominent Breed family, the Bishops, the infant Breedmate was raised in a life of luxury until her eighteenth birthday, when she went missing while out at a jazz club. Corinne was abducted while under the watch of one of her family's Darkhaven security detail (see Brock) and was eventually presumed dead, a lie perpetuated by the actions of her Darkhaven father, Victor Bishop.

After seventy-five years of imprisonment in Dragos's breeding labs, Corinne is rescued by the Order, along with several other captured Breedmates. It is discovered that she and the others were part of genetic and reproductive experiments, where Corinne gave birth to a son thirteen years ago, a boy she named Nathan. Her quest to find him, and to stop the villain responsible for her suffering, brings Corinne into the middle of the Order's war against their enemy-and into the arms of one of the most lethal members of the Order, the Gen One former a.s.sa.s.sin called Hunter. Corinne loves jazz music, particularly Bessie Smith.

Hair: long, sleek ebony Eyes: almond shaped, greenish-blue Breedmate mark: back of her right hand Bloodscent: bergamot and violets Unique ability: sonokinesis Mate: Hunter Heroine in: Deeper Than Midnight (Book 9) First mention in series: Appears in Taken by Midnight.

Curtis (d.) Human. Newer kid at Anna's Place (see Jack). It is later discovered that Curtis is a Minion of Edgar Fabien's, after Curtis spots the Order warrior, Nikolai, recuperating in a garage apartment at the halfway house with Renata. Curtis's report to Fabien results in a team of Enforcement Agents swarming Anna's Place. In the melee, Nikolai manages to get his hands on Curtis but before he can get the Minion to tell him who his Master is, the human has a knife in hand and slices his own throat open, killing himself.

First mention in series: Appears in Veil of Midnight.

Cyril Smithson (d.) Breed male. Unacknowledged son of Gideon's long-ago enemy in London, Hugh Faulkner, the sword-maker. Cyril witnessed the duel where Gideon killed Hugh, and the young Breed male swore a secret vengeance. Cyril sent Rogues to slaughter Gideon's young brothers and retrieve the sword Hugh lost in the contest against Gideon. Soon afterward, Cyril left England to begin a new life of wealth and privilege in Boston under the name Smithson.

He crosses paths with Gideon again when the sword inadvertently ends up in a collection of Colonial artifacts donated to Boston University, where Savannah Dupree learns of its ign.o.ble past through her ESP touch, which sets into motion events that bring Gideon and Cyril into conflict once again. Cyril Smithson later follows Savannah and Gideon to Louisiana, where he shoots both of them in front of Savannah's sister's house. Gideon kills Cyril before saving Savannah's life with his blood bond. To this day, one of Cyril's bullets remains embedded in Gideon's brain, crippling his ESP ability and preventing him from taking on combat missions.

First mention in series: Appears in A Touch of Midnight (novella).

-D-.

Danika (MacConn) MacBain Breedmate of Order member Conlan MacConn until his death. Current Breedmate of Malcolm MacBain. Danika was born in Denmark more than four hundred years ago, and mated to Conlan of the Scottish clan MacConn from the time she was eighteen, until his recent death on a mission for the Order in Boston.

At the time of Con's death, Danika was pregnant with their first child. She left Boston to return home to Denmark, where she gave birth to her son, Connor. During the timeline of Ashes of Midnight, Danika provided a safe house in Denmark for Andreas Reichen and Claire Roth. There, she reads Claire's mind and a.s.sures Claire that Andreas feels the same regret at having lost so much time without each other.

Later, during the timeline of A Taste of Midnight, Danika and Connor travel to Scotland to reunite with Conlan's family in Edinburgh for the Christmas holiday. While there, Danika crosses paths with a dangerous Breed crime boss (see Reiver) and his scarred, mysterious henchman named Brannoc-a Breed male Danika once knew very well, at a different time, when Brannoc was a different man (see Malcolm MacBain).

Hair: blond Eyes: blue Breedmate mark: on her abdomen Bloodscent: fresh rain Unique ability: mind-reading Mate: Conlan MacConn, long-time Order warrior (deceased); Malcolm MacBain Heroine in: A Taste of Midnight (novella, Book 9.5) First mention in series: Appears in Kiss of Midnight.

Dante (Malebranche) Breed male, Order member and mate of Tess Culver. An only child, Dante was born in 18th century Italy two-hundred and twenty-nine years ago. Still has some of his Italian accent. Dante's father was killed by a political rival in Italy; his mother perished in a riptide while attempting to save a drowning victim sometime later.

The swaggering wise-a.s.s of the group, Dante has adopted the last name of Malebranche for when he's forced to mingle among humans. Malebranche ("evil claws") is also what he calls his weapons of choice-a pair of curved, t.i.tanium blades that he uses in hand-to-hand combat against Rogues. Dante fights hard and plays hard, and despite his brashness, he is also fiercely loyal to those he cares about. His closest friend in the Order is Sterling Chase, although that friendship becomes strained and nearly broken when Chase begins displaying signs of Bloodl.u.s.t and his actions start to jeopardize Order missions. Dante and Tess had intended to make Chase G.o.dfather to Xander Raphael, but they instead ask Gideon to take the honor. The relationship between Dante and Chase is on the mend again during the timeline of Darker After Midnight.

Hair: black Eyes: whiskey-colored Unique ability: cursed with premonitions of death Mate: Tess Culver (couple has a newborn son named Xander Raphael) Hero in: Kiss of Crimson (Book 2) First mention in series: Appears in Kiss of Midnight.

Dmitri (d.) Breed male, Nikolai's deceased younger brother in Russia. About twenty years Nikolai's junior, Dmitri was bright and bookish, fond of philosophy and taking things apart to see how they worked. But he adored Niko, wanted to be more like his older brother. One night Dmitri overheard one of Niko's rivals from the Ukraine making harsh remarks about his brother. Dmitri called the Breed male out and cut him with a dagger. A lucky strike, but it infuriated the other vampire, who took Dmitri's head in retaliation. Niko later hunted down the Breed male from Ukraine and killed him. Niko brought the prize to his parents as an apology for Dmitri's death, but they shunned him, telling Niko it should have been him instead of Dmitri. Niko left his kin and never looked back.

First mention in series: Referenced in Veil of Midnight.

Doctor Lewis (d.) Human. Private medical specialist who has been treating Tavia Fairchild's "condition" all her life. Doctor Lewis is, in fact, a Minion under Dragos's command, along with another of Tavia's handlers (see Aunt Sarah). Out of his private, secured clinic in rural Sherborn, Ma.s.sachusetts, Doctor Lewis is also secretly treating others like Tavia-Gen One Breed females created in Dragos's breeding labs.

Through Doctor Lewis's records, Tavia discovers information about herself (as Subject 8, Patient "Octavia") and others who were placed into various secret locations to live unwittingly among the humans as part of the mortal population, their Breed genetics medically suppressed, until Dragos feels the need to activate his creations for his own purposes. Tavia also discovers that Doctor Lewis was using her gift of photographic memory to supply Dragos with names and intelligence on various political officials and human government contacts while she lay in medically-enhanced debriefing sessions at the clinic. Tavia kills Doctor Lewis at the house she lives in with her "Aunt Sarah," after the doctor arrives and attempts to drug her following her realization that she is something other than basic h.o.m.o Sapiens.

First mention in series: Appears in Darker After Midnight.

Dragos, aka Gordon Fa.s.so, aka Gerard Starkn, aka Drake Masters (d.) Second-generation Breed male, unmated. Son of a Gen One Breed father who bears the same name (see Dragos the elder) and mother named Ka.s.sia.

Born in secret in the mid-1300s, Dragos was sent away by his mother to live with a family by the name of Odolf for her child's protection. Ka.s.sia feared what might happen if word got out that Dragos's Gen One father, during the war between the Order and their alien forebears, had secreted away one of the Ancients to a hidden hibernation crypt in the Bohemian mountains. Dragos's father died at an enemy's hand (see Marek), taking his secret to his grave, and Ka.s.sia, in danger herself, took her own life. But Dragos was too much like his duplicitous father. When he stumbled upon the secret of the Ancient's location many years later, he decided to use the knowledge-and the sleeping Ancient's genetics-to his own personal advantage.

Retrieving the Ancient and imprisoning him in his breeding labs, Dragos spent decades growing his own army of Hunters and experimenting to create a branch of the Breed never seen before: Gen One females, like Tavia Fairchild. Over the years, Dragos wore many masks and a.s.sumed many names. He moved in human circles as Gordon Fa.s.so and Drake Masters, and ama.s.sed power and allies within the Breed as Gerard Starkn, director of the Enforcement Agency.

Dragos's madness grew over time, culminating in one final, irreparable act of retaliation on the Order for all their efforts to thwart him. He freed hundreds of Rogues from captivity all over the world, turning them loose on unsuspecting human populations and exposing the Breed to mankind in the worst possible way. Dragos was finally killed by Sterling Chase, but the damage he'd done was immeasurable. The b.l.o.o.d.y aftermath of that pivotal night has come to be known as First Dawn.

First mention in series: Referenced in Midnight Awakening; appears in Midnight Rising.

Dragos, the elder (d.) Breed male, Gen One. Father to Dragos the second, mate of Ka.s.sia. One of the original members of the Order at its founding in mid-1300s. Committed an act of treason during the Order's war with the Ancients when he aided the otherworlder who sired him in escaping death and instead hid the Ancient away in a mountain cave in what is now the Czech Republic. Dragos the elder made the mistake of confiding his secret in another Breed male (see Marek) and paid for that error with his head, taking the location of the Ancient with him to his grave.

First mention in series: Referenced in Midnight Awakening.

Dylan Alexander Breedmate of Order member Rio. Born and raised by her single mother in New York, Dylan had two half-brothers, both also named after rock musicians: Morrison and Lennon. Thirty-two during the timeline of Midnight Rising, Dylan Alexander was born with a troubling gift for seeing the dead. Fearful of being taken advantage of or shunned for this ability, she's long tried to hide it, to deny it. As an adult, Dylan went on to make a career for herself in journalism, until she let a personal bias cloud her reporting. Demoted to a tabloid rag, she stumbles across a blockbuster story while vacationing in the mountains of the Czech Republic.

This story, exposing a mysterious crypt hidden in the caverns, brings her face-to-face with the existence of the Breed-and puts her in the middle of the Order's war with a dangerous enemy bent on world domination. It also draws her to scarred, emotionally-closed off Rio, and into a pa.s.sion for which neither of them was prepared. Dylan later learns that the man she thought to be her father (see Bobby Alexander) was actually her stepfather, and her true father is a man her mother met in Mykonos by the name of Zael. Through Jenna Tucker-Darrow's investigation, it is revealed that Zael is a likely Atlantean immortal.

Hair: long, curling flame-red Eyes: gold-flecked green Breedmate mark: nape of her neck Bloodscent: juniper and honey Unique ability: can see and hear the spirits of dead Breedmates, but cannot communicate with them Mate: Rio Heroine in: Midnight Rising (Book 4) First mention in series: Appears in Midnight Rising.

-E-.

Edgar Fabien (d.) Breed male, second generation. Around four-hundred years old, unmated, and leader of his Darkhaven in Montreal, Quebec, for a century and a half as of the timeline of Veil of Midnight. A wealthy Breed civilian, Fabien has ash-blond hair, bird-like facial features and a slender, muscular build. He is always meticulously dressed, typically in the finest custom-tailored suits. Fabien's connections reach deeply into the Darkhaven elite and the highest tiers of the Enforcement Agency. His wealth and connections help insulate him from any fallout resulting from the s.a.d.i.s.tic, criminal bent of his personal interests, which include a fondness for young girls.

Fabien is also secretly in league with Dragos, a lieutenant in his inner circle. Alexei Yakut makes the mistake of underestimating Fabien's power and attempts to strong-arm his way into the fold by orchestrating his father's murder and offering up Order warrior Nikolai as the perpetrator. Fabien ends up with Niko in his custody and the child seer, Mira, as his personal prize, purchased from Alexei for the sum of two million dollars. In exchange for his efforts, Alexei is killed at his father's lodge by Enforcement Agents, an attack arranged by Dragos and Fabien. Later on, Fabien presents Mira to Dragos as a gift at a gathering of Dragos's followers. When the gathering is raided by the Order, Dragos blames Fabien for the botched security and shoots the Breed male between the eyes, killing him.

First mention in series: Appears in Veil of Midnight.

Eleuterio "Rio" de la Noche Atanacio Breed male, Order member, mate of Dylan Alexander. Born in Spain, sometime in the early 1900s. Never knew his father, a Rogue who raped Rio's sixteen-year old mother and left her pregnant with a child she would fear and despise as a monster.

Later, orphaned as a young boy after men from the village raided his mother's cottage and killed her, Rio was found around the age of five and raised by an area Darkhaven. They taught him what he was and how to survive. They also gave the boy who was given no name by his mother, and who thought of himself as an abomination because of his "manos del diablo"-his lethal, devil's hands-an elegant, meaningful name: Eleuterio de la Noche Atanacio.

Despite his tragic past and a more recent betrayal by his first Breedmate (see Eva) that left him terribly scarred and nearly destroyed him, Rio remains one of the most n.o.ble, honorable members of the Order. He is mated to Dylan Alexander, whom he encountered in the Czech mountains, after Eva's ghost led Dylan to the cave where Rio was hiding.

Hair: dark brown, thick and wavy Eyes: topaz Unique ability: cursed with power to kill with his touch, particularly when provoked Mate: Eva (deceased); Dylan Alexander Hero in: Midnight Rising (Book 4) First mention in series: Appears in Kiss of Midnight.

Emma MacConn Breedmate of James MacConn, a cousin of Conlan MacConn. Emma is a pet.i.te redhead, in her twenties. She and James live in Edinburgh, Scotland, and were both present at the holiday party in the novella, A Taste of Midnight, where Danika encounters a dangerous crime boss named Reiver and his bodyguard, Brannoc (AKA Malcolm MacBain).

First mention in series: Appears in A Taste of Midnight (novella).

Eleanor Archer (d.) Breedmate of Lazaro Archer, mother to Christophe and other, unnamed sons. Eleanor was killed in the razing of the family Darkhaven in Boston, an attack ordered by Dragos. Eleanor ("Ellie") was beautiful and headstrong, and deeply loved by Lazaro.

First mention in series: Referenced in Taken by Midnight.

Elise Chase Breedmate of Order member Tegan. A ward of the Darkhavens since she was a little girl in the slums of 19th century Boston, Elise was raised by a prominent Breed family, the Chases. Eventually she became the Breedmate of Quentin Chase, elder brother to Sterling Chase. Quentin died five years before the events in Kiss of Midnight, widowing Elise. More recently, their eighteen-year-old son, Camden, went Rogue after being exposed to a drug called Crimson and is since deceased, shot and killed by Sterling Chase when the Rogue might have lashed out at his mother.

After Camden's death, Elise wants vengeance on the individual responsible for creating the drug that poisoned him. Her quest brings her up against Tegan from the Order, and introduces her to a dangerous pa.s.sion she cannot resist.

Hair: light blond Eyes: pale lavender Breedmate mark: on the inside of her right thigh Bloodscent: heather and roses and fresh spring rain Unique ability: telepathically hears the sins and negative energy of humans Mate: Quentin Chase (deceased); Tegan Heroine in: Midnight Awakening (Book 3) First mention in series: Appears in Kiss of Crimson.

Ethan Breed male, young Enforcement Agent in Boston. Ethan is the Agent who calls Mathias Rowan down to the aftermath of the ma.s.sacre at the Chinatown Enforcement Agency strip club. Ethan is a good Agent, but new to his post. Rowan reflects that the Breed male is devoted to justice, a rarity within the Agency at that time.

First mention in series: Appears in Darker After Midnight.

Eva (d.) First Breedmate of Rio. Betrayed him and the rest of the Order to Marek, leading the warriors to an ambush that left Rio gravely wounded and near death. His injury was not Eva's intention, and when the team returns with ma.s.s casualties, Eva reveals her duplicity and eventually kills herself after Rio publicly denounces her.

Eva appears as a ghost in Midnight Rising, first acting as a guide to Dylan Alexander in the Czech Republic, leading Dylan to find Rio, who is wasting away in the mountain cave where the Ancient had once been located. Eva implores Dylan to "save him." Later, Eva appears again, this time to Rio, after Dylan is captured by Dragos. Eva helps Rio find Dylan at the Croton Reservoir dam in New York. Eva makes one final appearance to Dylan, after Rio and Dylan are mated and safe at the Order's compound in Boston. Rio burns Eva's remaining personal effects, and Eva sadly smiles to Dylan in understanding, acceptance, before fading away.

First mention in series: Appears in Kiss of Midnight.

Evran (d.) Breed male, Lucan's older brother, the middle of the three siblings (Marek being eldest). Evran went Rogue soon after he reached adulthood. He was later killed in combat during one of the old wars between the Breed and the Rogues, Evran being on the wrong side of the conflict.

First mention in series: Referenced in Kiss of Midnight.

-F-.

Fiona MacBain (d.) First Breedmate of Malcolm MacBain. Fiona was gentle and innocent, just twenty-two when Malcolm met her. She looked at him like some kind of fairytale hero, helped the jaded Breed male remember what it was like to be carefree and open. Mal and Fiona were together less than a year when he realized he loved her. They mated and lived at his castle Darkhaven outside Edinburgh, then soon Fiona became pregnant.

She was only a few months along when she traveled alone to the city one day to pick up bedding for the nursery while Mal was home building her a custom rocking chair. Fiona was grabbed off the street by a pimp who supplied a local Breed crime boss's blood clubs (see Reiver). Fiona fought her abductor and was stabbed through the heart. Feeling her pain through their blood bond and sensing she was still alive, Malcolm defied the noonday sun to look for her. He arrived in Edinburgh burned and weak, too late to save his mate. But he found the pimp and killed him, then vowed to avenge Fiona and their unborn child by infiltrating the organization of the crime boss and destroying him from the inside. Although Breedmate funeral rites call for cremation, Malcolm instead brought Fiona's bloodied body home and buried her that same day.

First mention in series: Referenced in A Taste of Midnight (novella).

Fran Littlejohn Human. Resident of Harmony, Alaska. Works at the town's medical center. Fran was present when Skeeter killed Big Dave Grant at the center. Kade later trances her, making her forget what she witnessed and has her tell a gathering of Harmony residents that Big Dave died on the table from his attack injuries.

First mention in series: Appears in Shades of Midnight.

Freyne (d.) Breed male, Enforcement Agent. Freyne is present at a crime scene with Mathias Rowan when Sterling Chase and Brock show up to talk with Rowan. Freyne taunts Chase about his nephew Camden's death, inciting Chase to fight with him. Later, after Kellan Archer's abduction, Freyne is the Agent who receives a tip from a human informant about the location where Kellan is being held. Freyne is present on the Agency mission to rescue the Breed youth, led by Mathias Rowan. While there, Freyne's duplicity and alliance with Dragos is revealed when, left alone with Chase to guard Kellan's father, Christophe, and his grandfather, Lazaro, Freyne instead murders Christophe and Lazaro narrowly survives. Freyne is killed by Hunter, who comes upon the attack and intervenes.

First mention in series: Appears in Taken by Midnight.

-G-.

Gabrielle Maxwell Breedmate of Order leader Lucan. Orphaned as an infant in Boston twenty-seven years before the Midnight Breed series opens. Gabrielle's unwed teen mother was inst.i.tutionalized, and later committed suicide, after claiming to have been attacked by a vampire. Gabrielle doesn't know who her father is, was raised in foster care until being adopted by local (human) family, the Maxwells, when she was twelve. Gabrielle had a troubled youth.